September 28th: Smirnoff Apple & Blueberry Limited Editions

Here at ChocolateMission we are always open to expanding our horizons and you may have noticed us trying our hand reviewing other products we think might be of interest to our readership. As much as we don't like to admit we are absolute suckers when it comes to Limited Editions. These FMCG are very clever and they know that by just sticking a neat little sticker or logo saying 'NEW' or 'LIMITED EDITION' on the front of a product there is always going to be a portion of people that just can't resist the temptation that they might be able to try something they've never experienced before.

Well the @ChocMission team are certainly those type of people so needed no further invitation when given the opportunity by Smirnoff to try out two of their new flavoured vodkas. None of us in the team really drink apart from the weekends but for social occasions it is often vodka that is our tipple. Not being experts in the field we wont be giving these flavours a score as such, but being the opinionated souls we are, we of course wont hold back what we thought of them.

As you can see in our photos we were the lucky recipients of a bottle of Smirnoff Original Red Label and two of Smirnoff's limited editions flavours.

These limited editions were the Smirnoff Blueberry and Smirnoff Green Apple. These triple distilled 37.5% vodka came in very cool decorated bottles that were fully covered in a laminate plastic material. They looked tremendous managing to establish the premium feel of the Smirnoff brand but with a more fun, aesthetically pleasing look and feel.

On both bottles the on-pack blurb suggested pairing both with lemonade and also gave simple recipes for some crazy sounding Caipiroska (Blueberry vodka, Lime and Ice) and Apple Strudel (Apple vodka and Cinnamon) cocktails. Being the devils we are we tried both ways first paired with lemonade and then the slightly more elaborate methods suggested.

Paired with the lemonade the team were more fond of the blueberry as it had a stronger, more real tasting red berry flavour profile than the apple. The team still liked the green the apple with the lemonade however in comparison the flavouring was perceived as a little more 'forced' and not such a natural fit when consumed with the plainer lemonade mixer.

It wasn't all favouritism with the blueberry though. When it came to mixing for cocktails it was felt that the green able was the more dexterous of the two. The blueberry was so distinct its flavours cut through pretty much everything it was mixed with. On the other hand the green apple was a softer fruit option and the apple strudel cocktail suggested was a perfect example of where it allowed expression of other cocktail elements without losing relevance in the overall taste.

Overall both of these Smirnoff flavoured vodkas got a big thumbs up from the team. Both delivered on the fruit flavours they promised and offered unique vodka experiences that were a nice change from the original Red Label offering. Just as a warning both of these flavours softened the boozie kick you often associate with the spirit so watch out as they make most drinks highly, highly consumable :) If you want a cool looking, distinctive present for a vodka drinker you should give one of these a shot. We hope you enjoyed our thoughts on these - tell us what you think @Chocmission.